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REGION: Crowds attend Cadiz water meeting

ORG XMIT: CADIZ K--(neg)-- A sign warns campers to conserve limited water supplies at Hole-In-The-Wall campground in the Mojave National Preserve. Some neighbors fear the groundwater supply would be threatened if a proposed project between Cadiz Inc. and Metropolitan Water District passes. The project would enable Cadiz Inc. in nearby Cadiz, Calif. to sell water from the same underground aquifer used by the town of Essex and would allow MWD to store Colorado River water in the basin. There are concerns on how the project could impact the delicate desert ecosystem. 4-5-00

Hundreds of people gathered to support and oppose Cadiz Inc.âs proposal to pump Mojave Desert groundwater and pipe it to California cities.

Orange Countyâs Santa Margarita Water District, the lead agency on the project, was considering whether to approve the projectâs final Environmental Impact Report and move forward.

The meeting in Mission Viejo on Wednesday, July 25, started at 6:30 p.m. and was expected to go late into the night. No decision had been made as of 9 p.m.

Cadiz Inc. is considering the $220 million project beneath the desert land it owns 40 miles east of Twentynine Palms. Water would be pumped from an aquifer the size of Rhode Island and pumped through 44 miles of pipes to the Colorado River Aqueduct. From there, it would go to cities.

Opponents said drawing water from the Fenner Valley threatens the health of residents, wildlife and plants. They also voiced concern about hexavalent chromium in the water. The Environmental Protection Agency classified hexavalent chromium as a carcinogen. Studies show that exposure to the naturally occurring metal increases the risk of reproductive problems, interferes with childhood development, and causes liver and kidney damage.

More than two dozen critics armed with homemade signs saying âNo Cadizâ held a protest before the meeting. One called the project âan overdressed pig.â

âTheyâre privatizing water from our public lands,â said Claudia Sall of the Morongo Basin Conservation Association.

The watershed that feeds the aquifer is part of the 660,000 acres purchased by the Wildlands Conservancy in Oak Glen for conservation and public use, she said.

The water project is supported by the mayors of Fontana and Needles and various chambers of commerce. Some Orange County residents said they support the project to increase reliable supply for Mission Viejo, which relies on imported water from the Colorado River and Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

Scott Slater, Cadiz general counsel and CEO, said the project will conserve 1.6 million acre-feet of water that would otherwise evaporate from the valley and two adjacent dry lake beds.

âWe either intervene of the water is lost,â he said before a crowd of more than 400.

He said his company took criticism and concern from the first version of the project in 1999 and made revisions, spending $10 million to drill wells and map the area, change the pipeline route and downsize the project.

Sequoia Smith, a desert resident who spoke from a video feed from Joshua Tree, wondered why he wasnât working to conserve evaporation from swimming pools in Orange County. Others said the âdesert dewâ helps plants and animals survive.

The project would deliver up to 50,000 acre-feet per year to water agencies. A second phase also would provide underground storage for surplus Colorado River water in wet years.

Jurupa Community Services District in Riverside County has put down a $120,000 deposit for a share of 5,000 acre-feet per year, enough to supply about 10,000 families.

The other interested agencies are Three Valleys Municipal Water District in Claremont, Suburban Water Systems in Covina, Golden State Water Company in San Dimas and California Water Service Co. in San Jose.

The cost of the water would be $639 to $1,089 acre-foot, plus treatment, according to a 1,664-page environmental review. Metropolitan, the regionâs largest wholesaler, charges $560 per acre-foot for untreated water.

San Bernardino County supervisors approved a memorandum of understanding that laid out the review process for the project and gives the county authority to approve or deny a permit for the project.

The Santa Margarita Water District was named as the lead agency responsible for reviewing and approving the environmental impact report.

Delaware Tetra Technologies Inc., which operates a brine mining operation at two dry lakes adjacent to Cadiz Inc.âs property, has filed suit against San Bernardino County and Santa Margarita Water District.

The company claims the two violated state environmental law by not making the county the lead agency, since it has the principle authority for approving the project.

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